The theory of evolution . The theory of relativity . The Cat in the Hat . All were brought to you by introverts .

Our culture is biased against quiet and reserved people , but introverts are responsible for some of humanity 's greatest achievements -- from Steve Wozniak 's invention of the Apple computer to J.K. Rowling 's Harry Potter . And these introverts did what they did not in spite of their temperaments -- but because of them .

As the science journalist Winifred Gallagher writes : `` The glory of the disposition that stops to consider stimuli rather than rushing to engage with them is its long association with intellectual and artistic achievement . Neither E = mc2 nor Paradise Lost was dashed off by a party animal . ''

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Introverts make up a third to a half the population . That 's one out of every two or three people you know .

Yet our most important institutions -- our schools and our workplaces -- are designed for extroverts . And we 're living with a value system that I call the New Groupthink , where we believe that all creativity and productivity comes from an oddly gregarious place .

Picture the typical classroom . When I was a kid , we sat in rows of desks , and we did most of our work autonomously . But nowadays many students sit in `` pods '' of desks with four or five students facing each other , and they work on countless group projects -- even in subjects like math and creative writing . Kids who prefer to work by themselves do n't fit , and research by educational psychology professor Charles Meisgeier found that the majority of teachers believe the ideal student is an extrovert -- even though introverts tend to get higher grades , according to psychologist Adrian Furnham .

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The same thing happens at work . Many of us now work in offices without walls , with no respite from the noise and gaze of co-workers . And introverts are routinely passed over for leadership positions , even though the latest research by the management professor Adam Grant at Wharton shows that introverted leaders often deliver better results . They 're better at letting proactive employees run with their creative ideas , while extroverts can unwittingly put their own stamp on things and not realize that other people 's ideas are n't being heard .

Of course , we all fall at different points along the introvert-extrovert spectrum . Even Carl Jung , who popularized these terms in the first place , said there was no such thing as a pure introvert or a pure extrovert -- that `` such a man would be in a lunatic asylum . '' There 's also a term , ambivert , for people who fall smack in the middle of the spectrum .

But many of us recognize ourselves as one or the other . And culturally we need a better balance of yin and yang between the two types . In fact , we often seek out this balance instinctively . That 's why we see so many introvert-extrovert couples -LRB- I 'm an introvert happily married to an extrovert -RRB- and the most effective work teams have been found to be a mix of the two types .

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The need for balance is especially important when it comes to creativity and productivity . When psychologists look at the lives of the most creative people , they almost always find a serious streak of introversion because solitude is a crucial ingredient for creativity .

Charles Darwin took long walks alone in the woods and emphatically turned down dinner party invitations . Theodore Geisel , better known as Dr. Seuss , dreamed up his creations in a private bell tower in the back of his house in La Jolla . Steve Wozniak invented the first Apple computer alone in his cubicle at Hewlett Packard .

Of course , this does n't mean that we should stop collaborating with each other -- witness Wozniak teaming up with Steve Jobs to form Apple . But it does mean that solitude matters . And for some people it 's the air they breathe .

In fact , we 've known about the transcendent power of solitude for centuries ; it 's only recently that we 've forgotten it . Our major religions all tell the story of seekers -- Moses , Jesus , Mohammed , Buddha -- who go off alone , to the wilderness , and bring profound revelations back to the community . No wilderness , no revelations .

This is no surprise , if you listen to the insights of contemporary psychology . It turns out that you ca n't be in a group without instinctively mimicking others ' opinions -- even about personal , visceral things like who you 're physically attracted to . We ape other people 's beliefs without even realizing we 're doing it .

Groups also tend to follow the most dominant person in the room even though there 's zero correlation between good ideas and being a good talker . The best talker might have the best ideas , but she might not . So it 's much better to send people off to generate ideas by themselves , freed from the distortion of group dynamics , and only then come together as a team .

I 'm not saying that social skills are unimportant , or that we should abolish teamwork . The same religions that send their sages off to lonely mountaintops also teach us love and trust . And the problems we face today in fields like economics and science are more complex than ever , and need armies of people to solve them .

But I am saying that we all need alone time . And that the more freedom we give introverts to be themselves , the more they 'll dream up their own unique solutions to the problems that bedevil us .

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Susan Cain : Many of the world 's great advances have been made by introverts

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She says society puts pressure on children and adults to work in groups

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`` Groupthink '' can get in the way of imagination and creativity , she says

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Cain : Give introverts the freedom to be themselves